What the BBC didn’t want SBS viewers to see. More questions about Monday night’s edition of Top Gear from the BBC which was screened on SBS at 7.30pm. There was the editing glitch claimed by the BBC but not picked up by SBS which left a reference at the start of the program to material which didn’t appear. But the claims that 100% BBC produced content is taken out for legal or other reasons, (such as international rights and licensing) doesn’t wash. Top Gear is a 100% BBC produced program with all its material self-generated. So is the BBC hiding the fact that it is censoring programs for international release? The news segment of Top Gear usually runs in the version supplied to SBS, so to have it taken out of this particular episode is odd. A Crikey reader and former TV operative writes: “ Was it the the comments made by host Jeremy Clarkson linking BMW with the Nazis that caused a stir in the UK at the time it was originally broadcast. From my reading of the transcript the comments were made in jest, like all of Clarkson’s observations, so why remove them? Political correctness?” The comments by Jeremy Clarkson set off a BBC investigation after a complaint was made. That complaint was dismissed. Here’s a transcript of what Clarkson actually said in the edition of Top Gear and what Australian viewers didn’t get to see or hear. The humour is juvenile but no more so than Little Britain or Fawlty Towers. Or South Park.

The winners. The tennis did it for me last night; and for you, the reader? It did it for Seven, along with the usual cast of favourites this week: Home and Away, Seven news and Today Tonight.And while the tennis was good, it the earth was stationary but today it should rattle a bit with several Australians back on court in Melbourne. there was a total of seven programs with a million or more viewers last night. Home and Away was again tops with 1.412 million people from 7 pm. Today Tonight was second with 1.405 million, Seven news was next with 1.356 million, Nine News was 4th with 1.149 million, A Current Affair fifth with 1.115 million and Close to Home, Nine at 8.30 pm, 1.064 million. Two And A Half Men averaged 1.048 million at 7.30 pm and the 7 pm ABC News, 1.047 million. Seven’s tennis from 7.30 pm averaged 956,000 and the late tennis 545,000. Nine’s The New Adventures of Old Christine, 946,000.

The losers. Losers? Viewers last night who didn’t like tennis, Men in Trees on Nine (781,000), Numb3rs on Ten (779,000), My Family on the ABC at 8 pm with 744,000 ( and is trite), repeats of Tedium on Ten (sorry, Medium) with 718,000 and Australian Princess on Ten at 7.30 pm with 708,000. The alternatives to tennis are pretty dreary. Outrageous Fortune, Nine’s cost cutter from Kiwi land averaged 395,000 at 10.30 pm. The late tennis was more entertaining.

News and Current Affairs. Seven News again won nationally lost Sydney and Melbourne but won Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. The national margin was 207,000, the Perth margin was 129,000. Today Tonight beat A Current Affair by 290,000 nationally and 148,000 in Perth. TT won all markets. Ten News at Five averaged 906,000. The strong ABC News at 7 pm held up The 7.30 Report which averaged a solid 914,000.Ten’s Late News/Sports Tonight averaged 445,000 at 10.30 pm. Nightline on Nine, 220,000 at 11.30 pm. In the morning 7 am Sunrise averaged 434,000, 7 am Today edged up to 236,000. Ms Murdoch is a handicap not an answer. No real improvement on Ms Rowe except Ms Rowe is a journalist.

The stats. Seven won with a share of 32.5% (28.1% a week earlier), from 26.4% for Nine (27.9%) from Ten with 19.7% (21.4%), the ABC with 14.3% (15.3%) and SBS with 7.2% (7.7%). Seven won all five metro markets and now leads the week 28.4% to 27.4% for Nine. In regional areas Prime/7Qld were narrow winners with 30.6% from 30.0% for WIN/NBN, from Southern Cross (Ten) with 19.0%, the ABC with 13.5% and SBS with 6.9%.

Glenn Dyer’s comments. More tennis today and tonight with a solid Australian flavour. The ABC still has the absurd Physic Detectives at 8 pm and a more believable Shipwreck Detectives debuting at 8.30 pm. SBS has the Daily Show with Jon Stewart at 10 pm. And there are more bodies, in the Midsomer Murders repeat on Nine from 8.30 pm. A Lleyton Hewitt slugfest would be more entertaining, but for those who don’t like sport, it isn’t tennis. But it is slow. The real story is down in Melbourne’s Docklands and Eddie McGuire fronting of the new Nine game show 1vs 100. Perhaps he should be hosting Australia’s Brainiest Footballer on Ten at 7.30 pm, watching Numb3rs at 9.30 pm or yet another edition of Law and Order Criminal. Actually the first of the new game show tapings would rate its socks off wouldn’t it? It’s going to be an odd situation where the host will be bigger than the show itself…but that’s always been Eddie’s forte and the strength of a good game show (Bert’s Family Feud) Although it’s not Andrew O’Keefe’s Deal or No Deal on Seven. And Seven is bringing its new game show, Rich List to air on Monday January 29. That’s when Nine is screening the last Steve Irwin doco.